Owner Stephen Ross told Pro Football Talk last month in Arizona that the Dolphins won’t be moving, which necessarily reduces his leverage. But if he fails to secure partial public cooperation to improve a stadium that was built with private money more than 25 years ago, some think Ross will at least consider selling the team.

And if the sells the team, the next buyer could be less committed to keeping the Dolphins in Miami.

The other alternative would be for Ross to simply fund the renovations without public money. By blinking, however, Ross and the NFL would be setting a horrible precedent for any future efforts by other teams to finagle public money.

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Despite any philosophical concerns about the use of taxpayer money to subsidize billionaires, billionaires always have options. For Stephen Ross, one or more of those options could lead to the Dolphins leaving town.

This area cannot afford this. Schools cannot even afford to buy books. We have been duped into quite a few stadium and arena referendums over the years that its about time these billionaires fund these things themselves. This is all about getting super bowl 50. And if Ross sells it wont be a bad thing.

How much money does the stadium bring in to the local economy of Miami? How much does a SuperBowl bring? Has anyone shown it to be a sound investment? Would a better stadium bring in more money, and if so how long would it take for the increase to be worth it to the local community?

The other alternative would be for Ross to simply fund the renovations without public money. By blinking, however, Ross and the NFL would be setting a horrible precedent for any future efforts by other teams to finagle public money.

The other alternative would be for Ross to simply fund the renovations without public money. By blinking, however, Ross and the NFL would be setting a horrible precedent for any future efforts by other teams to finagle public money.

The precedent should already be set, no tax payer money. Period.

The only South Florida taxpayers that would be paying taxes for this are the ones that stay in South Florida hotels.

Taxing the tourists is smart. South Florida will always have a tourist crowd. I think the Dolphins need to do a better job of informing the residents. I knew about this already. But, a casual fan who lives down in S. Fla might think he or she is about to get hosed on the stadium deal.. Which isn't actually factually accurate.

This is a MuCH smaller scale, but the town I used to live in would put an item to a referendum 3x a year until it passed. There were 4 No votes on one issue until it passed. I imagine Ross could go down that path if he chose

Looking over it, it's not that bad. Thanks for the education. In Tampa they raised the tax, but it was I believe 20 years or something stupid like that. Chicago is a joke, they mayor banned chic filet for expressing an opinion on gays. I guess Chicago doesn't believe in the 1st or 2nd adem.

The other alternative would be for Ross to simply fund the renovations without public money. By blinking, however, Ross and the NFL would be setting a horrible precedent for any future efforts by other teams to finagle public money.

The precedent should already be set, no tax payer money. Period.

The only South Florida taxpayers that would be paying taxes for this are the ones that stay in South Florida hotels.

That's still money that should go to hospitals, schools, and police/fire departments

Stadium taxes on out-of-town visitors at hotels is nothing new. I can't count how many times I've traveled out of state and found myself paying a stadium tax at the hotel. In addition, a 1% hike is very small. If you consider the average person probably only spends a couple hundred dollars at the hotel, this means they would only spend about $2 at check out. The local community won't be hurt by this move at all in my eyes. It's a very modest request by the Dolphins.

My only question, is why the Dolphins aren't asking for more money to build a new stadium?

Ross is one of the wealthiest owners in the NFL, and one of his specialties is in real-estate development. While his plan is a very simple one, and one that allows him to keep the stadium competitive for the next 5 to 10 years for Super Bowl bids, its only a temporary fix. I think this is merely delaying the inevitable need for a new stadium to be built.

With demands rising constantly for Super Bowl bids, and new stadiums popping up around the country, I think the Dolphins need to step up their game and get on par with the rest of the NFL. Not only that, but what a great selling point a new stadium would be for Hurricane recruits. Between the Dolphins and Hurricanes I think Ross would have no trouble recouping his money over time.